Chapter 1: A Place I Can Call Home
Cysti. It was Vaardenvalian for "Home". A small, simple word in comparison to other Elven ones. It was formed during the early years of the formation of the Vaardenvalian Kingdom, during the early wars with the underground Drow, or "Dark Elves". It was something the Vaardenvalian troops would say to remember what they were fighting for in the cruel, dark, cold tunnels. It was formed by the Elven word Cys meaning "Familiar" and Ti meaning "Place". Right now, for Earendur Surion, it was... a painful word. Memories flooded the young half-Elven Prince's mind as he wept in his small pod. Memories of fire, a sea of darkness, of screaming, of metal clashing, of dark, sadistic laughter... of pain. His home... the home he's known for so long... was gone. Vaardenvale was gone. The pod hurdled through space, containing the loud wails of the brown-haired young man inside. Then Surion heard it. The mechanized, female voice inside the pod announcing in that motherly tone that barely managed to console him "Approaching Forfanx Galaxy. Do you have a specific course you'd like to take?" Surion remembered hearing about this galaxy in class... it was home to the Humans. They called their planet... Earth. Humans... He was Half-Human. Maybe they'd be kind to him... Maybe they could be his home... He couldn't go back, couldn't face his brethren now. They never liked him to begin with, calling him a "Half-Breed Bastard" because of his father, the King, sleeping with a Human to form him. But perhaps these Humans weren't all that bad... "E-Earth... Go to Earth..." Surion spoke, wiping tears away. His soft blanket beneath him felt warm and wet from his crying. The computer spoke once more "Very well." At this, the thrusters in the rear of the pod jetted forth and sent them on a course for the planet. He had a home still... A place he could call... Cysti. Being Human Earendur found himself under a new name, a new identity. He was now Aubren, a strange, old English name. Thanks to Illusionary Magic, he is able to assume the appearance of an ordery, mousey Human. No pointed ears, no sharp, piercing gaze, no air of elegance and importance, no heightened stature. Just... Aubren. ---- Arra The glare of the mid-day sun had managed to snake it's way through the the half closed blinds, and right into Arra's blue eyes. She squinted awkwardly, doing the best she can to block of the blinding glare. She even turned her head a bit to the side, and eventually, she titled her head. It looks awkward, but it worked. She was free of the glare. "Ms. Sans. What are you doing?" Mrs. Embry, the Biology 2 teacher asked loudly. Mrs. Embry was old, her grey hair tied up in a bun, and her face covered with wrinkles. She glared angrily at Arra. "Sorry, there's just this huge glare, and it's right in my eyes." Arra replied harshly. Mrs. Embry sighed, used to Arra's disrespect, and faced the chalkboard again. The old teacher wrote down several more notes on the board, mostly about next week's test, but Arra didn't bother even reading it over. But it didn't matter, because after a few seconds of the chalk scrapping against the board, a loud shrill sound filled the air. "Alright students, that's the bell, so I'll see you all tomorrow. Remember next Tuesday is your test, and please please please remember your projects!" Mrs. Embry yelled to the exiting class. Arra picked up her books, hurriedly stuffed the, in her big black backpack, and then was on her merry way. She left the awkward smelling biology room and entered the crowded halls, swarming with people. She sighed in anger. She hated people. ---- Matt ---- God...damn...it... Matt Woods rested his head on the desk, trying to drown out the sounds of the teacher, the chalk, and, more annoyingly, the constant bickering of Uriel and Nyx, the angel and demon in his head. To any other person, they would think that he was crazy. Hell, he had even thought it for a time. However, when they actually materialized in front of him and interacted with the environment, he figured that he wasn't crazy. He actually had an angel and a demon alongside him. However, at the current moment, Matt had a horrendous headache, and the noise of them in his head just made it all the worse. He told them both to just shut up, but the lot of good that did. If anything, it just made them argue more, blaming the other for Matt's headache. Eyes fluttering and brain threatening to doze off, Matt readjusted his head on the desk. That was, until the teacher called out Arra. He opened one of his eyes to see what had happened, but quickly closed it again. Mrs. Embry had gotten used to Matt and his antics, to the point of she not even bothering with him before. He skimmed through the class, never doing any homework but somehow managing to pass all of the tests with flying colors, even scoring higher than 100% with the bonus points. Just as Matt fell into a sleep, he was jolted awake by the bell. It was a horrible, yet redeeming noise. A noise that screamed "Hey! Wake up! It's time to leave!". So, Matt yawned widely, gathered his book and his backpack, and followed Arra out of the classroom and into the crowded hallway. He saw the annoyed look on her face and grew one of his own. As much as he adored his friends, he hated the random people in the narrow halls. Matt intentionally bumped into Arra and gave her a slight grin. "Hey kid, watch it!", Matt said in a playful tone. ---- Surion Uriel spoke in her usual squeak of a voice "No! There's no logic to it! Matt has to study!" Her Demonic counterpart, Nyx, retorted "Says who? Society?" Before Uriel could lash back, she noticed Arra and waved "Hey, look! It's-" Nyx pushed her out of the way as they materialized on Matt's shoulder "Hey Arra!" Uriel clenched her teeth and huffed at Nyx childishly "You did that on purpose!" Nyx gave her a questioning look "Did what? Say hello to Arra?" Surion kept to himself, keeping his gaze to the ground as he walked through the cold hallways. He felt like he was back at the Elven Magic Academy, surrounded by strangers. But these people didn't know him at all. They knew not of his heritage or his race. It was better that way. In his careless walking, he accidentally bumped into a rather large student. Tall and muscular, he gave Earendur a hard glare and demanded offendedly "The hell was that for, punk?" Earendur stopped in his place, frozen while gripping the straps of his backpack that was slung over his shoulder heavily. His stare fell to the floor and he found he couldn't move, speak... even breath. "I asked you a fucking question!" he demanded again, more loudly. By this time, every eye was on them. Some murmurs were hear in the crowd that was forming, a ring in this hallway. A fight was about to start and every soul in this section of the school was in hot anticipation for it. Humans were so thirsty for blood, whether it be by their own hands or for their eyes. One of the kids in the crowd, wearing a green shirt with some punk rock band's name on it grabbed the larger boy's arm "Hey, Mark, chill man. He's-" This "Mark" fellow jerked his arm out of the boy's grip and followed up "I know what he is! He's a fucking retard who needs to watch where he's going!" Before Surion knew it, "Fight!" began being chanted by all the students. And when he turned around, Mark already had his fists up to send the Half-Elf into next week. Timidly, Surion dropped his bookbag and took a stance with his arms at his sides. He was going to dodge, but not fight. He couldn't draw attention to himself. Upon taking his stance, Mark began a flurry of hard brawler punches. Each connected... with air. The crowd gasped at each swing but were even more impressed by how the young lad dodged each blow. He turned his head fast in time for Mark's arm to reach past him. When the taller kid tried a backhand swing, Surion ducked and it slammed against a kid's head, knocking him back and out cold. Whereas the others rushed to the kid's side, Mark kept swinging. He smashed a water fountain with his wrist and only clenched his teeth, ready to smash Surion's skull. Surion, in the mean time, didn't understand what was going on. He disrespected this man in some way, but... why all this effort? Mark bellowed "Stand still and let me hit you, you little-" ---- Arra ---- {C}Arra looked back at Matt and his two little "problems" with a roll of her eyes. "'Ey bitch, watch where you're walkin'!" She playfully cursed at Matt with a smile. She didn't really mean the insult, she wouldn't do that to Matt. He was her best friend after all. But hey, what are best friends for besides cursing at? She looked up at Uriel and Nyx with a roll of her eyes. "And how are my two fave little 'problems' doing today~?" She asked teasingly as she walked beside Matt into the crowded hall full of people. Matt shared Arra's annoyence with the random people amassing in the hallway, but he didn't quite hate them like she did. But there was something odd about the formation of all the moving bodies. They were in a tight circle and chanting the word "Fight" over and over again. Arra's eyes lit up. "Ohmigosh Matt! It's a fucking fight!" She exclaimed happily. If there was one thing Arra loved more than the word "fuck", it was fights. All kinds of fights, boxing matches, WWE wrestling matches, MMA fights... She craved the blood, the action, the adrenaline that was shared at the fight. It was a glorious feeling, watching two great fighters duke it out in a test of skills and strengths... She ran over to the group of people, totally forgetting about Matt. She shoved the people in front of her out of the way rudely, ignoring all the shouts of "Hey, watch it!" and of the like. She wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Once she was on the edge of the ring, able to see the fight in full glory, she understood who it was. It was Mark, the most hot-headed asshole in all of school. Arra found him amusing because he fit the "Jock School Bully" stereo-type perfectly. It was almost enough to make Arra crack a smirk whenever Mark was brought up. But the other guy... Who was he, exactly? Tall-ish(when compared to Arra), brown curly hair... He didn't look familiar. She leaned over to the stranger next to her. "Ey, who's the Shrimp?" she asked him. He just shrugged, confirming that he didn't know either. She did with the strange woman on her right as well, but she didn't know who the strange was either. "Well," she thought, "for a scrawny twig, he sure can move fast. I bet the punk-ass bitch hasn't even take a hit!" ---- Matt Matt simply rolled his eyes at Arra's teasing words. She was a minx, that was for sure. However, his eyes scanned the crowd as Arra spoke to Uriel and Nyx. Something wasn't right...They were all gathering together. Either someone brought some good pot to the school, or there was a fight. The latter was reassured when the crowd began chanting, and Arra's exclaim. He followed her to the crowd of people and saw Mark, the local school bully, swinging wildly at a kid he had never seen before. The new kid, Matt saw, was dodging every one of Mark's swings. But there was something...Different about him that Matt couldn't quite put his finger on. He just had a different aura than everyone else. During his training and development of his powers, Matt realized that he could somewhat read emotions of people, see their auras, things like that. But this guy...His aura was erratic. Nothing like he had ever seen on a human. Mark, by this time, was getting royally pissed. Matt would've continued watching without saying a word, however, he saw one of Mark's goonies sneaking up behind the new kid. That spelled trouble. So, without thought, Matt took off his backpack and dropped it at Arra's feet, almost on them. He muttered a "Here, watch my shit." as he weaved his way through the crowd of people. First, Matt took gaze at the goonie. This was the part that Matt loved the best: the time right before the fight. The time when adrenaline, mixed with spiritual essence, began coursing through his veins. Time seemed to slow for him as he delivered a swift, yet powerful kick to the goonie's face. He crumbled, and before Mark had time to blink, his face was being smashed into the wall right next to him. Matt not only heard but felt the breaking of Mark's nose, which was a satisfying sound. Before Mark hit the ground, Matt already had his hand extended to the new kid. "Yo, my name's Matt Woods." ---- Surion ---- ...Was this how all Humans introduced themselves?! What the hell was wrong with everyone on this planet?! "H-Hello... I'm... Auby..." he greeted shyly, extending a shakey hand to exchange with the Human. This felt so personal... touching another's hand with his own to meet... It felt like kissing on a first date. Mark was helped to his feet by his friends, but he bitterly shoved them aside as he turned, one hand covering his bleeding face, the other arching back to blast the life out of Matt's arrogant eyes. Before his fist could connect, however, a quick principal managed to react by grabbing the muscular student's wrist tightly, bringing it up with a stern glare at the student "Rider, Woods... in my office, now! Everyone else, back to class!" All the other students groaned in dissapointment and trudged off to their assigned classes, the other beaten student being helped to the nurse's office. Before Surion could react, the principal glared at him as well "You too! In my office, now!" ...Bollocks. ---- Arra Arra sighed and slunked off, leaving the scene of the fight. She was more upset than anything else, partly because she wanted some action too, and also because Matt was probably going to be in In-School Suspension all day as well. She rolled her eyes at the thought of her petty anger. 'Now don't be selfish.' She thought as she walked to Mr. Littlefeild's room. Normally she'd have Matt with her this period too, but she had to bare Study Hall all by herself. She mentally hung her head as she walked the walk of lonesome shame, having to sit by herself was going to be beyond gay. The classroom smelt like a strange mix of old ham, cheese, and coffee, and it made Arra sick to her stomach. But it was bearable, she guessed. The tables in the white walled room were round and wood, and she took her seat in the back of the room, alone. Other students were piling in the room as well, and she mentally groaned before laying her head on the table with frustration. This was going to be a long day without Matt... _____________________________________________ Matt _____________________________________________ After Matt was pulled into the principal's office and bitched at for what seemed like forever, he was finally let go. Just a day of in-school suspension and nothing more was the penalty for him. Hey, he could live with that. The new kid, from what Matt heard, got off a bit easier since he was new. Mark, however, seemed to get the worst of it, being given a week of out-of-school suspension. Matt knew that that would piss him off and cause him to most likely seek Matt out and try to beat the shit out of him, but oh well. The day seemed to drag on and on, the second hand on clock on the wall inching slowly around the face. However, the day went by due to entertainment from Uriel and Nyx. They did have their moments in which Matt found them comical, especially since he was bored. As the final bell rung, Matt gathered himself and walked out the door, looking for Arra mainly. It took him no time to find her, since she was at their normal meeting place after school. He gave her a small grin as he took his backpack back from her. "Miss me?" He asked as he headed towards the doors of the school. There, he was greeted by the sight of the new kid, Auby. Matt thought about that for a second. Auby...What kind of name was that? Without any hesitation, Matt walked up to Auby and patted him on the shoulder. "Huh. First day, and you manage to piss off the biggest asshole in this school. Nice going. But hey, wanna come with Arra and I? We usually chill at her house." Matt said in length. It was true, since Matt didn't have a home, he spent the majority of his time at Arra's house. He gave Arra a glance to make sure what he said was all right, and even if it wasn't okay, Matt would still invite him for the walk there. This guy seemed cool, and the fact that he had a different aura made Matt want to get to know him all the better. ---- Surion Earendur jolted when he'd heard Matt's voice. Earlier today his heart sank when being given that long speech about equal treatment and how our actions will reflect upon others. He still felt a bit guilty about it. He turned to his saviour and the girl beside him and looked innocently bewildered. When Matt had finished talking, Earendur didn't know what to say. He stood there for a moment, eyes fumbling around for the right words. It took him months to learn the English language and after a year here on Earth, he still had a little bit of trouble now and then but was able to communicate with other Humans, for the most part. "I, uhh... that... sounds... good." Pastarol! How could he be so awkward?! He held his books close to his chest in timid fright of these people. "Matt" appeared staunch and tall, with broad shoulders that looked invoking on the otherwise meek frame of the "Human", Auby. His friend, however... she was... invoking in a different way. Dark, tan skin that reminded him of the pots in the Merchant Squares of his world... Hair as black as a Raven... Blue eyes that held an icey yet alluring stare. A stare that striked just as much fear into Earendur as the one Matt gave. Caelaes, he needed to get a grip... ---- Arra Arra scoffed loudly when Matt asked her if he missed her. With a laugh, she punched his shoulder lightly. “You stupid bitch! I was all alone, all day! Do you know how fucking awful lunch was without you to talk too?!” She yelled in what sounded like anger, but the smile on her face proved otherwise. She then turned to face the new kid…. What was his name, um, Alex, or something like that? He looked kind of scared of her and Matt, but other than that, he seemed…. Okay, she guessed. “Yeah, he can chill with us. He seems cool, but just because of those sweet-ass dodges you pulled earlier! But hey, just a word of advice. If you’re gonna hang with us….” She took a step towards him, and poked him in the chest to emphasize her words. “You need to grow some balls, bro. You look fucking terrified!” She said with a laugh. she stepped back, and looked at the two of them before starting the walk back to her home. The streets around her apartment were crude, covered with graffiti, and shady people were crowded around in tight groups. Most of these strange people were Arra’s familiars, seeing as she lived in this area. They gave her and Matt curt nods, but they just stared at the new kid. (Arra had eventually remembered his name was “Auby”.) It was still a few more blocks until they reached her run-down place, so they had a few more minutes of walking. “Hey! You little shits! We have some unfinished business!” A voice called out the trio. It was the unmistakable voice of Mark Rider. Well, balls.